'Anyone can paint a bungalow': Meet P.E.I.'s lighthouse painter

Wade Clements didn't set out to specialize in painting lighthouses but he's become somewhat of a go-to guy when it comes to painting P.E.I.'s iconic towering lights.

"They're high, they're in windy areas and they're a great tourist attraction for Prince Edward Island," she said.

He and his crew from Mallard Painting are now finishing up work on their fifth lighthouse at East Point.

Five lighthouses so far

East Point will be the fifth lighthouse Clements has painted on P.E.I.

A couple of years ago, he answered a tender to paint the light in Victoria-by-the-Sea, and started in on his first lighthouse.

His crew also painted the lighthouses at Point Prim and Souris last year. This year, they've done Panmure Island and East Point. The company also has bids in on another three lighthouse painting jobs on P.E.I.

Clements and his crew have also turned into a tourist attraction of their own and have been captured, doing their work, in hundreds of photos.

Wind is the biggest challenge

They use boom trucks to get to the upper reaches of the lighthouses. One can withstand winds of 40 kilometres per hour, the other is good up to 24 kilometres.

"The biggest challenge is the height of them and as you can see today, the wind," explained Clements. "We've got to be careful of the wind."

This job, at East Point, will take about two weeks from start to finish, though the fall weather isn't helping.

"The days get a little bit shorter, the wind seems harder in the fall," said Clements.

Prepped to paint

Before the painters arrive on scene, another company comes on site and completely washes the buildings, to get the sand and salt and debris under the paint.

Then Clements and his crew scrapes the paint, repairs shingles and windows that need repair, then prime and paint.

The East Point lighthouse has had most of its shingles replaced, so there's no concern about lead paint. In other locations, where there is still older paint, Clements and his team contain the chips, vacuum them up, and put them in barrels to be sent to a disposal company in New Brunswick.

Red and white all over

Another challenge of the job? A lot of red and white paint.

"We've all gone home with what we call our butcher shirts on, all kinds of red paint all over it," joked Clements.

Clements admits he enjoys being dubbed the "Lighthouse Painter."

"It's kind of fun," smiled Clements. "Anyone can paint a bungalow."

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